Freezing tray



R. H. CHILTON FREEZING TRAY Dec. 21, 1943.

3 Sheets-Sheet Filed Feb. 27, 1937 De; 21, 1943. R. H. mmmr f FREEZINGTRAY Y' Filed Feb. 27, '1957 :s sheets-sheet 2 HEM Huf/fm w- WL K,

dit

w www @QQ y NN SW R. H. CHILTON 2,337,450

FREEZING TRAY Filed F'eb. 27, 1937 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Dec. 21, 1943.

Patented Dec. 21, 1943 FREEZING TRAY Ralph H. Chilton, Dayton, Ohio,assignor to General Motors Corporation, Detroit, Mich., a corporation ofDelaware Application February 27, 1937, Serial No. 128,153

12 Claims.

This invention relates to freezing containers, especially to portablefreezing trays adapted for use in house-hold refrigerators.

An object of this invention is to provide improvements in suchpresently` known devices whereby the frozen ice blocks may be removedwithout the necessity of melting the frozen bond between the tray partsand the ice. A more specic object is to provide improvements over thedevi`ce disclosed in application S. N. 98,213, filed August 27, 1936, byDonald H. Reeves and assigned to the assignee of this application. Onefeature of such improvements is greater simplicity of structure andfewer parts whereby the cost of manufacture of this present device isvery materially less but its eiliciency in operation is maintained.

A feature of lthis invention is the elimination of any actuating handlevers or similar devices to cause relative movement between the gridparts to facilitate the removal of the frozen ice blocks. In this devicerelative movement between the grid parts is obtained by a simple blow,or other externally applied force, on one end of the assembled grid.Also in this device the required head-room between the water level andthe highest point of the tray mechanism may be kept very small, andhence there will be less head-room required in the freezing compartmentfor a stack of the trays of this invention. In other words, nearly thefull depth of the entire tray device may be utilized by filling withwater to a relatively higher level.

Another feature is the simple method of loosely assembling the crosspartitions to the longitudinal partition, whereby the desired relativemovement between these parts is readily permitted. Also in the finalassembled structure, the tilting movement of the cross partitions ispermitted without the necessity of crushing out'any such substantialnecks of ice as would render its normal operation materially morediiiicult or to crack up the ice blocks.

Further objects andiadvantages of the present invention will be apparentfrom the following description, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings wherein a preferred embodiment of the present invention isclearly shown.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a portable ice tray and grid made according tothis invention.

Fig. 2 is a section on line 2--2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a section on line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 illustrates the actuation of the grid of- Figs. 1, 2 and 3 toremove the frozen' ice blocks therefrom after the grid is removed fromthe pan.

Fig. 5 is similar to Fig. 4, except here the actuating member is beingforced to the left Whereas itis being forced to the right in Fig. 4.

Figs. 6 and 7 illustrate a method of assembling the one-piece crosspartitions upon the two-section central wall. In Fig. 6 the uppersection of the central wall is in final location while the lower sectionthereof (shown in dot-dash lines) is being passed endwise thru the slotsin the cross partitions. Fig. 7 is a section on line I-'l of Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a plan view of a second form of the invention wherein all thecross partitions lean against shoulders on the upper section of thecentral wall when in normal freezing position, and wherein said uppersection is to be bumped in only one direction (toward the right).

Fig. 9 is a section on line 9-9 of Fig. 8.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout theseveral views.

The container pan I0 may be any known type f of pan but is preferably aone-piece metal pan pressed from sheet aluminum and having some degreeof flexibility as a whole. Preferably it is shaped according to thedisclosure of the pan in Y S. N. 88,559, filed July 2, 1936, by HarveyD. Geyer and assigned to the assignee of this application, now PatentNo. 2,122,937.

The grid of Figs. 1 to 7 is indicated as a whole by II and is made to beinserted rreely into pan l0 either before or after pan I0 is filled tothe desired level withvwater to be frozen. Grid II comprises a series of.separate cross partitions I2 and a central main wall composed of anupper section I3 and a lower section lil, all of which are mutuallyrelatively movable to a limited degree. 'lne upper anu lower sections I3and I4 are held substantially aligned in a vertical plane.

by their sliding rit in tiie aligned slots I5 in the cross partitionsI2.

In order to assemble the cross walls `I2 upon the sections I3` and I4,each cross wall I2 has a central slt I5 cut or punched therein of asuficient depth to permit the wider oi' the two sections I3 and I4 to bepassed endwise thru said slots I5. In addition, eachcross wall I2 has ametal flap I6 sheared at the two cuts Il therein (see Fig. 3) and thenbent out at such an angle as will temporarily provide a slot ofsufficient width to permit the two sections I3 and I4 to lie Vside byside in said slot (see Figs. 6 and 7). The sections I3 and I4 may thenbe passed endwise in overlapping relation thru said slots in cross wallsl2. When each cross wall I2 registers with atively slidable endwise inslots vI5 in the cross walls I2.

The preferred shape of notches 20 and 2| are best shown in Fig. 2. Thelower notches 2l are triangular except for the flat apex thereof againstwhich the bottom of slot I5.is pressed in each case by the fact that thelowerf'edge of each cross wall I2 bears upon 'the bottom of pan III.This forces each cross wall up against the flat apex `in its notch2I.and so tends to maintain each vcross wall I2 in vertical positionduring freezing.

The upper notches 20each has two opposed shoulders 22 and 23 on opposedsides of each cross wall I2 and having progressively widening clearances25 and therewith from one end of the grid to the other. For instance, inFig.

2 the clearances '28 vary progressively from a maximum at the right endof the grid to a minimum at the left end of the grid, and clearances 25vary from a minimum at the right end of the grid to a maximum at theleft end of the grid.

'Hence when upper section I3 is moved longitudinally to the right. asshown in Fig. 4, the shoulders 22 engage cross walls I2 successivelybeginning at the right end of the grid and tilt said cross walls I2forward one after the other. Conversely,` when vupper section I3 ismoved to the left, as shown in Fig. 5, the shoulders 23 engage the crosswalls I2 successively beginning at the left end of the grid and tiltsaid walls I2 forward one after the other in the opposite direction.Thus it is seen that the cross walls I2 will be tilted or movedsuccessively one after the other entirely regardless of which directionthe actuating upper section I3 is moved. An obvious advantage of thisfeature is that it permits section I3 to be moved alternately first inone direction and then in the other to materially facilitate the removalof the ice blocks with a minimum of applied force.

The upper section I3 is provided with a substantial quite rigidprojection 30 at each end thereof, which preferably extends beyond theend lips of pan III and is then.turned down and terminates at 3I at apoint below any immediately adjacent portionof pan I0. The lateral widthof portions 3U may be made as wide as desired to give a proper bearingarea for bumping same against a table or any other solid body, or simplyfor applying pressure thereagainst with the hands.

In operation, the grid is set snugly within pan I as shown in Fig.2,1llled with water to a level limited only by the top `edgeof pan I0,and set within a freezing chamber until the ice is solidly frozen andbonded to all contacting metal Asurfaces. To remove the frozen iceblocks, the pan I0 may be first removed Vby setting same on a ,table andpressing down on two diagonally opposite corners thereof to slightlyflex said pan III' to cause it to loosen from the ice and grid contents,or by any other suitable method. With the combination here disclosed thepan III may be removed from its contents by resting one end of the panI0 on a table and propping the other end up slightly with the end 3| ofprojection 3l resting on a solid object and then pressing down with thehands on the two high corners of pan III. The resulting up force on thegrid and down 5 force on pan I0 willreadily separate pan III from itsfrozen contents. The individual ice blocks may then be removed from thegrid by a slight blow or other force on either end projection 30, asillustrated in Figs. 4 and 5. By limiting the force of the applied blowor pressure the number of ice blocks removed at one time may be limitedaccording to desire.

If desired, the cross walls I2 may each be p vided with an offsetslotted flange 40 at its upper edge having a slot 4I therein withinwhich the upper edge of section I3 slides (see left end of Fig. 2). eachbe positively retained at right angles to the plane of the central wall,but said flanges 40 will not interfere with the proper operation of thedevice as described above. When the cross walls I2 are tilted and dropdown slightly by actuation of section I3, these flanges 40 simply takethe position shown at the right side of Fig. 4. In other words flanges40 do not prevent the decross walls I2.

The form of the invention shown in Figs. 8 and 9, will now be described.In this form the cross walls I2' are preferably inclined from thevertical when in normal freezing position, and each has a slotted flange40' having a slot 4I' therein within which thelupper edge of the uppersection I3 slides. Now when the grid I I is inserted into pan II), thecross walls I2 will each be tilted over in the same direction until thebottom of its slot 4I' rests against its shoulder 23 (see Figs. 8 and9). This normal tilted position of cross walls I2' is caused both by theaction of gravity and by the bottom edge of each cross wall I2 bearingupon the bottom of vpan I0 and forcing By this means the cross walls I2will sired tilting and dropping movements of the said cross wall upagainst. the top of the lower notch 2|' at the bottom margin of thelower secthe frozen ice blocks the pan III may be removed .l

by any method described hereinabove, after which an external force isapplied to upper section I3',- as shown by arrow A in Fig. 8, to causesuccessive tilting of the cross walls I2 in a manner very similar tothat described above in connection with the form shownvin AFig. 4. Inotherwords, the shoulders 22 successively engage and tilt the crosswalls I2' due to the progressively greater clearances from the rightside of' Fig. 9 to the left side of Fig. 9. After each cross wall I2 istilted forward suiciently to release the two ice'blocks in front ofsame, it is then free to drop down a slight distance and can then bemoved forward and further tilted suiilciently to permit the requiredfurther movement tothe right (in Fig. 9) of the upper section Il inorder to complete the tilting actuation of cross walls I2.

A further feature of the form shown in Figs. 8 and 9 is the extension ofthe strong rugged end projection 30' so that its lower end 3|' liesbelow `the plane of the bottom of pan III. When this structure of gridis used .with a slightly flexible metal pan III, the pan may be readilyremoved from its frozen contents simply by setting the tray upon a fiattable or other solid surface (indicated by line 50 in Fig. 9) and thenpressing down with the hands on the two high corners of pan IB. Theillustrated clearance I between the pan bottom and surface 50 permitsthe resulting up force on the grid and down force on pan I0 to slightlyiiex pan I0 and readily separate it from its frozen contents by a s ortof peeling action. The removal of the individual ice blocks from thegrid may then be accomplished as above described, Preferably a plate 32of substantial area is spot-welded or otherwise fixed -to the front ofprojection 30 in order to stiien same and at the same time provide agreater bearing areav for the application of the external force A. Forinstance, with such a relatively large bearing area the above-describedactuation of upper section I3' may be readily accomplished by bumpingagainst plate 32 with the ball of the hand.

A still further feature of the form shown in Figs. 8 and 9 is theinclined cam surface 60 at the right end of the upper section I3' (asseen in Fig. 9) which is arranged to engage the end lip 6I of pan I0.Thus a further possible method of removing pan Ill from its frozencontents is simply to apply force A (that is, to bump the opposite endof section I3) This will rst slide the icegrid comprising: a main wallhaving relatively longitudinally movable upper and lower sections, and aseries of transverse partition walls each loosely retained upon saidmain wall and being capable of a tilting movement relative thereto; saidupper section having L'a series of shoulders adjacent its upper edgevwhich upon longitudinal movement of said upper section successively'engage and tilt said transverse walls to facilitate the ejection of thefrozen ice blocks.

3. A partitioning grid for a freezing tray, said grid comprising: a mainwall having relatively longitudinally movable upper and lower sections,

and a series of transverse partition Walls eachI loosely retained uponsaid main wall and being capable of a tilting movement relative thereto;said upper section having a series of shoulders adjacent its upper edgewhich upon longitudinal movement of said upper section'su'ccessivelyenembedded portion of section I3'v thru its molded groove in the ice,thereby causing camsurface 60 to ride upon lip 6I of pan I0 and forcesame outwardly and downwardly and thus free pan I0 from its frozen bondto the ice block contained therein. The grid and ice is then removedfrom the pan and the separate ice blocks removed from the'grid as abovedescribed.

In all herein disclosed forms of the invention, the longitudinalmovement of the actuating upper section I3 or I3 may be greatlyfacilitated by first loosening its ice-embedded lower margin from theice. This can readily be done, either before or after pan I0 has beenremoved from the ice contents, simply by grasping the entire unit withthe hands and banging the end surface 3i or 3|' of the dependingprojection 30 or 30' as the case may be against a solid surface such asa table. Obviously such banging will also often loosen pan I0 from itsfrozen contents although this method of loosening pan I0 is optional.

The upper longitudinal sections I3 and I3' are preferably made fromrelatively heavy smooth stainless steel in order to withstand theforcesexerted thereupon during actuation of the device as above described.The' pan I0, -the cross partitions I2 and I2', and the lower sections I4and I4 are preferably made of anodized sheet aluminum, and given a verythin coating ofa suitable grease or a high melting point wax tofacilitate the separation of the ice from the contacting metal surfaces.A

While the embodiment of the present invention 'as herein disclosed,constitutes a preferred form,

it is to be understood that other forms might lbe adopted, all comingwithin the scope of the claims which follow.

What is claimed is as follows:

1. A partitioning grid for a freezing tray, said grid comprising: a mainwall having relatively longitudinally movable upper and lower sections,and a series of transverse partition walls each loosely retained uponsaid main wall and being capable of a tilting movement relative thereto;said upper section of said main wall having means thereon serving tosuccessively engage and tilt said transverse walls upon longitudinalmovement of said upper section relative to said lower gage and tilt saidtransverse walls to facilitate the ejection of the frozen ice blocks,said upper section having an end projection adapted to receive a suddenblow to cause it to move longitudinally relative to said lower section.

4. A partitioning grid for a freezing tray, said grid comprising a mainwall having relatively longitudinally movable upper and lower sections,and a series of transverse partition walls each loosely retained uponsaid main wall and being capable of atilting movement relative thereto,

said upper section of said main wall having means thereon servingto'successively engage and tilt' said transverse walls upon longitudinalmovement of said upper section relative to said lower section, saidupper section having a projection extending beyond the frozen ice blocksand adapted to receive an externally applied blow to cause it to moveand tilt said transverse walls.

5. The combination of a freezing tray and a removable grid disposedtherein, said grid comprising a longitudinal partition formed of aplurality of elongated sections one superposed upon and slidable uponanother, and a series of partition elements carried by and extendingtransversely of said elongated partition to provide therewith and withsaid tray a series of ice cube compartments, said elongated sectionbeing constructed to provide an endwall for each cube compartment havinga smooth face extending from the top to the bottom of such compartment,said transverse elements being so mounted as to be tilted by relativemovement of said elongated sections vand thereby break the bond betweenthe grid and the ice cubes frozen therein after the grid structure hasbeen removed from the 6. A device of the character described comprisinga tray, a grid assembly removably positioned in the tray comprising anotched member ex tending longitudinally'of the tray, a plurality ofwall members extending transversely of said longitudinal member andloosely held in spaced relation in the notches of said longitudinalmember, said transverse members being normally inclined with respectto-the bottom of the tray and adapted for angular movement from normalposition, and mechanism carried by the grid assembly adapted to contactthe tray to rst raise the grid assembly relative to the tray and thenmove the transverse members from their normal inclined. position.

7. In liquid congealing apparatus, the combination of an ice pan, a gridmember removably disposed therein for dividing the ice pan into a.plurality of ice cube forming cells, said grid member comprising acentral longitudinal wall member formed of two superposed parts both ofwhich divide the ice pan longitudinally thereof and one of which ismovable lengthwise relative to the other, and aplurality of transversewall members movably attached to said longitudinal wall member, each ofsaid transverse wall members being provided with a slot in the centerthereof to receive both of said longitudinal Wall sections, said toplongitudinal wall member being provided with a series of slots vin thetop thereof and said bottom longitudinal wall member being provided witha series of slots in'the bottom thereof, said slots in said longitudinalwall members receiving said transverse wall members and being ofsuiiicient width to permit angular movement of the transverse wallmembers relative to the longitudinal wall members when the transversewall `members are rotated by movement of one of the longitudinal wallmembers relative to the other, after the grid member has been at leastpartially removed from the ice pan.

8. The combination of an ice tray embodying side and bottom walls and agrid removably disposed therein and arranged to cooperate therewith forforming ice cubes, said grid comprising a longitudinal member composedof a plurality of relatively movable longitudinal extending sectionsdisposed substantially in the same vertical plane, and a series ofspaced substantially rigid transverse fins extending across the width ofthe ice tray, said grid being open at its bottom so that theice cubescontact the bottom of the tray; said fins extending into slots on saidlongitudinal member and being loose with respect to the sections of thelongitudinal member and arranged to have movement in relation to saidlongitudinal sections and means associated with said longitudinal memberfor imparting such movement to the ns.

9. A partitioning grid for a freezing tray, said grid comprising: acomposite partition wall having relatively longitudinally movable upperand lower sections, a series of transverse partition walls eachextending transversely to and associated with said composite wall insuch manner as to permit each of said transverse walls to move relativeto both of said upper and lower sections, said composite Wall havingmeans for engaging and moving said transverse walls upon relativelongitudinal movement between said upper and lower sections thereof tofacilitate the loosening of the frozen ice contents from the grid.

10. A removable partitioning grid for forming ice block compartments ina freezing tray, said grid comprising: a longitudinal partition wallhaving a substantially rigid actuating member extending longitudinallyalong its length and slidable relative thereto, a series of transversepartition walls each loosely retained upon and movable relative to saidlongitudinal partition Wall, said transverse walls beingmoved relativeto each other and to said longitudinal wall by l the longitudinalmovement of said actuating member, said actuating member having aprojecting end portion extending endwise beyond the frozen contents ofthe grid and arranged to receive the full endwise impact when the gridwith its frozen contents is bumped endwise against an outside body so asto move said actuating member longitudinally.

l1. A removable partitioning grid for forming ice block compartments ina freezing tray, said grid comprising: a main longitudinal partitionwall, a series of transverse partition walls spaced apart along thelength of said main wall, said Y transverse walls each being tiltable tofacilitate the removal of the frozen contents of the grid, said mainwall having associated therewith a relatively longitudinally movableactuating member extending along the length of said main wall and havingmeans for engaging and tiltingsaid transverse walls, said actuatingmember having an impact-receiving portion extending endwise beyond thefrozen contents of the grid and so arranged as to receive the endwiseimpact when the grid with its frozen contents is bumped endwiseagainstan outside body so as to move said actuating memberlongitudinally,

12. A freezing tray and a removable grid therefor, said grid having alongitudinal wall and a series of cross walls movable relative thereto,said longitudinal wall having a longitudinally extending actuatingmember for moving said cross walls relative to said longitudinal wall,said actuating member having an impact-receiving portion extendingendwise beyond all other parts of thev

